Metallic dragon (Dungeons & Dragons)

Metallic dragon is a classification of dragon found in the role playing game Dungeons & Dragons. In this setting metallic dragons are of good alignment.Bahamut is the deity of good-aligned dragons and metallic dragons, and currently the only known Platinum dragon in existence. Metallic dragons have played a large role in D&D's various monster compilation books, and for most of the game's history five main types - brass, copper, bronze, silver, and gold - were presented as roughly analogous to the five types of chromatic dragons. The fourth edition of the game's second Monster Manual substituted iron and adamantine dragons for brass and bronze, and released the latter dragons in a later book alongside cobalt, mercury, mithral, orium, and steel dragons.

Publication history

The classification of "metallic dragons" was used in the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons second edition Monstrous Manual (1993), although the gold(en) dragon first appeared in the original Dungeons & Dragons "white box" set (1974) and the other dragons comprising the category had been in print since the first edition Monster Manual (1977). The term was continued in use in the third edition and fourth edition Monster Manual.

Silver Dragon (coin)

Silver Dragon coins, also sometimes known as Dragon dollars, are silver coins issued by China, Japan and later Korea for general circulation in their own countries. Featuring a dragon on the obverse, all were inspired by the silver Spanish dollar which following its introduction into the region in the 16th Century had set the standard for a de facto common currency for trade in the Far East, this specification being a weight of 27.22 grams and a fineness of .900.

History

Following the establishment of the Spanish Philippines, Intramuros became an entrepôt for Chinese goods in one direction and silver, from across the Pacific to the Spanish held silver mines of Mexico, in the other. This so-called "Manila Galleons" trade route, led from the 16th Century onwards to the wide circulation and acceptance of "pieces of eight" in East Asia. Even after the end of the Spanish Empire in the Americas, Western nations wishing to trade with China found the preferred method of payment was the silver Mexican Peso, the successor of the Spanish dollar.